The “GAP WORK Project on improving gender-related violence (GRV) intervention and referral through ‘youth practitioner’ training” was a European Union’s Daphne-III Programme co-funded project (code: JUST2012/DAP/AG/3176) that was led by the Brunel University London (UK) between 2013-2015, and designed and coordinated by Dr Pam Alldred. Experiences from the project remain relevant to understand GRV and intersectionality, terms which have been theorised and explored in many different ways.
The GAP WORK Project was a European Union Action Project of 11 partners, 9 associate partners from 6 countries in order to challenge gender-related violence against (and by) children and young people by developing training for practitioners who have everyday contact with general populations of children and young people (referred to as ‘youth practitioners’ in the project). Each partner country designed and delivered new training for practitioners. The training aims were both responsive and preventative: that is, through improved knowledge and understanding youth practitioners will be better able to:
- support children and young people (CYP) and know when and how to refer to the most appropriate support services, and
- identify and challenge sexist, sexualising, homophobic or controlling language and behaviour.
Professionals outside legal/welfare services typically have little training on gender violence. This project surveyed what was reported about the success of training for professionals on GRV (Report 1) and then developed new training and innovative materials for this group, because, given their contact with large numbers of CYP, they urgently need to be better informed. Targeting this general group of practitioners and allocating a portion of project funds to support them in sharing their learning with colleagues, it was specifically designed to address the EU’s DAPHNE-III programme priority of the preparation and delivery of training to professionals in contact with victims, and made an ongoing intervention in practitioners’ knowledge and skills. It leaves a legacy of lasting resources for practitioners, and trained and skills-sharing practitioners in six countries: Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Serbia, Spain, and the UK.
Here you can find some of the resources developed during the project:
GAP WORK project final report (Alldred etal, 2016)
GAP WORK cascade training, Brunel University, UK (2014):
1 Unpacking Gender Related Violence (GRV)
2 promoting healthy relationships
Rights of Women, UK (2014)
